Edward m



(No Model.)

B. M. BENTLEY. ELECTRIC RAILWAY.

No. 427,725. Patented May 13, 1890.

WITNESSES lNVENTEIFk .wMflm UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDIVARD M. BENTLEY, OF NE\V YORK, N. Y.

ELECTRIC RAILWAY.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 427,725, dated May 13,1890.

Application filed August 9, 1888. Serial No. 282,341. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, EDWARD M. BENTLEY,

which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to electric railways in which the arrangement shownin my patent, No. 385,787, of July 10, 1888, is employed. By the systemtherein disclosed a vehicle on an electric railway is provided withcontact devices for both an inclosed and an exposed electric railway,the exposed section being a single-conductor and the inclosed section adouble-conductor railway. For the exposed section it is necessary toprovide both a contact device for the overheadwire and agroundconnection for the return, while for the inclosed section it isnecessary that the groundconnection be broken, so that the onlyconncction with the propelling motor is through the plow extending intothe inclosing-conduit.

My present invention consists in a device by which when the overheadcontact device is removed out of its operative position it willautomatically interrupt the grou11d-connection.

In the accompanying drawi11gs,formi11g part of my specification, Figure1 is an elevation of one end of a car provided with an overhead contactdevice-such, for example, as is shown in Patent No. 386,78t to W. H.Knight-while the motor and the conduit c011- tact device arediagrammatically indicated. Fig. 2 is a larger view of the switch forthe ground-connection. Figs. 3 and at are detailed views showing theinclosing-conduit and means for operating the contact-plow.

In the drawings, A represents an overhead supply-conductor.

B represents a pivoted rod, having at its end a contaccwheel bearingagainst the under side of A. The rod B is pivoted above the frontplatform of the car, so that it may be dropped down along the roof ofthe car when out of operation. It is connected to one terminal of themotor, while the other terminal of the motor has a grouml-connectionthrough the switch 0 upon the roof of the car, so

placed that when the rod B is dropped it will fall upon the switch andoperate it.

D is the plow or, contact device for the conduit, connected, as shown,to the terminals of the motor. This plow when in operation extends intoa conduit 0, inclosing the two supply-conductors 0 o, and can be thrownup out of operative position by lever P, connected to a suitable portionof the car Q.

In Fig. 2 the switch 0 is shown as constructed with the spring-plate Enormally resting against a contact F. Upon springplate E is a fork G,into which the rod B is adapted to fall. The circuit is normally closedby the spring E, resting against F 5 but when the weight of 1 falls uponE it is depressed, so as to break the connection with F. \Yhen thisoccurs, the ground-connection is interrupted, and the car will be in acondition to proceed along the conduit, both terminals of the motorbeing then insulated, except through plow D. I11 this figure the fork Gis placed at right angles to the position it occupies in Fig. 1, and isshown closed, with the rod B just resting in the fork before its weightfalls upon the spring to open the contact.

It is also evident that without departing from the spirit of myinvention the currentconnection can be controlled by the act of throwinginto or out of its operative position the plow or contact device for theconduit, in the same manner, for example, that the circuit is controlledby this action in the device of Patent No. 338,174 to WV. II. Knight,March 16,- 1886.

My invention eomprehends, broadly, the automatic control of thecurrent-connection for the ground-line in the system above described bya contact device removable into or out of its operative position.

IVhat I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,is

1. The combination, with an electricallypropelled vehicle, of twocontact devices, one adapted for a single-supply conductor and the otherfor a doublesupply conductor, both removable into or out of an operativeposition, and the former provided with a ground-connection controlled byone of the two contact devices.

2. The combination, with an electricallypropelled vehicle, of a contactdevice for the .two inclosed supply-conductors, a contact device for asingle exposed conductor, and a ground-connection having a switchautomatically controlled by the movement of the latter contact deviceinto or out of its operative position.

3. The combination, with an electricallypropelled vehicle, of a contactdevice for an overhead supply-wire, consisting of a pivoted rod on topof the vehicle, having at its free end a contactbearin g against thesupply-c011- ductor, and a ground-connection with the propolling-motor,having a switch in line with the direction of movement of the saidcontact device, so as to be controlled thereby.

4:. The combination, with an electrically propelled vehicle, of acontact device for engagement with the supply-conductor movable into andout of operativeposition, and a ground-connection for thepropelling-motor, having a switch controlled by the contact device, asdescribed. 3

EDWVARD M. BENTLEY.

\Vitnesses:

.TULIEN M. ELLIOT, EDWARD S. MCKINNEY.

